EDITORIAL — Misbehaving cops

Two policemen of the Lapu-Lapu City Traffic Enforcement Unit (TEU) have now been relieved from their posts following a shooting incident in a private cemetery in last March 23.

According to reports, the two policemen, both police master sergeants have had a quarrel between them for a while now and when one came across the other in his vehicle parked in a private cemetery, he opened fire.

Fortunately, the other policeman was able to duck, with the slug only grazing his head. The offending policeman quickly left the scene and later surrendered himself to the TEU office.

The two were relieved from the TEU and are now assigned in the Regional Personnel Holding and Accounting Section.

Police authorities are still investigating what led to the shooting and have asked the public to refrain from spreading rumors, including talk that the two were fighting over a woman, said to be present in the car when shooting took place.

As policemen, we expect the both of them to behave better. Especially because they work together in the same unit.  Especially because they work in a high-stress environment and they have access to guns. Especially because they are supposed to be role models to ordinary citizens.

To be fair to the two policemen, we don’t know what issue they had or what led to the bad blood between them, but they shouldn’t have let it go that far.

While this behavior is expected of men who think themselves above the law, it isn’t expected of those supposed to uphold it.

Don’t get us wrong here; we aren’t saying policemen shouldn’t feel emotions like anger, jealousy, envy, or the like. Because we are all humans none of us are beyond emotions. However, we are expected to rein them in lest they overrule our judgment, dictate our actions, and make us do something we will regret later on.

The policeman who shot the other got lucky his colleague didn’t get hurt; it could have been much worse.